This invention relates generally to the field of plumbing fittings, namely, to plumbing fittings for connecting toilets to waste water drainage systems. More particularly, this invention relates to repairing such fittings.
Ordinary floor toilets contained in typical residential and commercial building washrooms require a connection through the floor to the waste water drainage system. Water closet flanges are a type of plumbing fitting used to connect such toilets to the drainage system.
A typical water closet flange has two components. The first is the pipe connector. The pipe connector accepts the toilet horn at one end and is connectable, for example, by means of a bell connector at its other end, with a drainage pipe. The pipe connector also typically includes a seat for housing a seal to seal the connection between the pipe and the toilet. This seal is required by building codes and prevents sewer gases and the like from entering the washroom.
The second component of the plumbing fitting is an attachment flange. The attachment flange is secured to the floor, and is also attached to the pipe connector. The attachment flange typically includes openings which allow it to be secured to the floor, and allow the toilet to be secured to the flange.
In some cases, both the pipe connector and the attachment flange are formed from plastic. In other cases, the pipe connector is formed from moulded plastic, but the attachment flange is formed from metal. Over time, in the humid environment of a typical washroom, metal attachment flanges tend to corrode, and require replacement.
In the typical replacement situation, the toilet is first disengaged from the water closet flange. The attachment flange and pipe connector are then exposed and the replacement of the attachment flange can begin. When replacing the corroded attachment flange, it is preferable to leave the pipe connector in place, because the pipe connector is attached to the waste pipe under the floor, and the joint between the waste pipe and the pipe connector is therefore inaccessible.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,319,268 issued to Blumenkranz discloses a water closet flange comprising a plastic annular pipe connector and an annular ring. The ring has an annular lip extending radially inwardly around the entire circumference of the ring. The ring also contains a number of angularly spaced slots therethrough which are adapted to receive toilet fastening members. The central opening in the ring (surrounded by the lip) is specifically sized so as to have the lip fit snugly in a groove located near the upper end of the pipe connector. The diameter of the portion of pipe connector located above the groove is larger than the diameter of the groove, so that the pipe connector is supported by the ring.
This device has the disadvantage of not being replaceable without disengaging the pipe connector from the waste pipe. This is because the upper end of the pipe connector is of larger diameter than the central opening. As a result, replacing this type of attachment flange requires the installation of a whole new fitting which is awkward, inconvenient and expensive.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,492,372 discloses a system to replace the flange only. The replacement flange comprises a pair of arcuate semi-circular pieces pinned at one end. Portions of the arcuate sections include an inwardly protruding lip for engagement with a groove. The ring can be installed on a connected pipe connector by opening the replacement flange and then closing it around the neck of the pipe connector with the lip engaged to the groove. The openable end of the replacement flange is then closed, and the flange is installed.
This attachment flange requires the manufacture of two separate pieces and the connection of the two pieces in a manner that allows them to rotate relative to one another. As a result, this attachment flange is both complex and expensive to manufacture.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,890,239 issued to Hite is directed to methods of repairing toilets. This patent discloses a replacement ring for use in a water closet flange. The replacement ring is a substantially flat circular ring which is sized to include a central opening larger than the locking groove of a pipe connector. Therefore, when the replacement ring is placed over the pipe connector and affixed to the floor, it does not fit into the locking groove in the pipe connector. As a result, the pipe connector is not securely retained by the replacement ring when the horn of the toilet is mounted into the pipe connector. This replacement ring has the disadvantage of not providing the structural stability to the toilet and pipe connector which is associated with having the flange lock onto a groove in the pipe connector.
Therefore, what is desired is an attachment flange which is simple, easy and inexpensive to manufacture, and can also be securely installed without needing to remove the balance of the fitting which remains in place.
Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a metal replacement flange for a plumbing fitting, where the fitting is provided with a pre-existing attachment groove. The replacement flange comprises a rim having a central opening which has a lip projecting inwardly from the rim along a portion of a perimeter of the central opening. The lip is sized and shaped to engage a portion of the pre-existing attachment groove. The replacement flange further comprises at least one locking tab mounted to the rim and being movable between an unlocked position and a locked position, the tab being sized, shaped and positioned such that the rim is detachable from the plumbing fitting when the locking tab is in its unlocked position, but not when it is in its locked position.